Wow! Internet con artists sure are slick. I was almost scammed on Facebook Marketplace last weekend while selling a few vintage dresses. As you know, I am extremely well-informed about psychopaths and their tactics. The scammers used all the standard con artist tricks. Yet the ploy was difficult to see while I was in the middle of it. I’m sharing this story so you can see how easy it is to get caught up in a scammer’s manipulation. Here’s what happened. I posted multiple items for sale on Facebook Marketplace for family members, including five vintage dresses that belonged to my stepmother. I priced the dresses at $25 each. I was not expecting any interest in them, so you can imag …
After 30 years with a sociopath, can Tapping help me recover?
If you’ve spent 20, 30 or even more years married to a sociopath, you probably feel like the life has been sucked out of you. But I assure you, even after years of narcissistic abuse, EFT Tapping can help you recover. I’m writing this story in response to a request from a Lovefraud Live! viewer. She posted the following question on my video, Sociopaths exploit everyone in their lives: Would like to know how tapping would help the effects of having lived with a sociopathic husband for 30 years? What took so long? I’ve heard from hundreds of people in this situation — long-term marriages with someone whom they finally realized was a sociopath. Mayb …
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‘Codependents Awake’ invites readers to question what they once called love
Editor’s Note: Eleanor Cowan, author of "A History of a Pedophile's Wife" and a Lovefraud contributor, has just published her new book, "Codependents Awake." Through 12 intimate, sometimes painful, and often hopeful short stories, Eleanor Cowan explores the patterns that keep people bound to harmful relationships, the moments that bring those patterns into view, and the courage required to begin living differently. Why I Wrote Codependents Awake By Eleanor Cowan One morning in July 2026, I found myself thinking about Mia, a young woman who had given me a lift home from an art group the night before. Halfway through the drive, she told me she admired my peacefulness and thought I …
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Wealthy NYC widow claims gigolo scammed her for nearly $6 million
A wealthy, heartbroken widow from New York City claimed she was scammed out of nearly $6 million by a male escort in a lawsuit filed last week in Manhattan Supreme Court. Marianne Flippo, 49, claimed in court filings that Gregg Starr, a male escort with ice-blue eyes and six-pack abs, professed his love for her in an attempt to swindle $10 million. He succeeded in getting $5.95 million, she alleged in the lawsuit, and she wanted it back. Grieving widow Marianne was widowed when she lost her husband, Chad. They were childhood sweethearts — Marianne had known him since she was 13 years old. They were married for 28 years and had three children. Chad made a fortune by d …
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This molecule gets you in and out of trouble with abusers
You’re probably here at Lovefraud because you trusted a narcissist, antisocial or psychopath and got burned. How did this happen? A specific molecule in your brain and body called oxytocin had a lot to do with why you got in trouble. Surprisingly, the same molecule helps you recover from the devastation. Why am I talking about biology and neuroscience on Lovefraud? To help you understand that biological imperatives have a lot to do with why you got involved, or stayed involved, with the sociopath. And, to inspire you to use the same biology and neuroscience to recover from the trauma. Oxytocin, bonding and trust Dr. Liane Leedom first wrote about oxytocin on Lovefraud in 2008. She e …
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Trauma capsules — your protection from childhood fear and pain
If you’re a kid growing up in a frightening or abusive environment, how do you survive? You dissociate. When your parents or other family members mistreat you, and running away is not an option, you escape mentally and emotionally. You stuff your painful experiences into “trauma capsules” and bury them somewhere in your subconscious, where they’re out of mind but still affecting your life. As part of my training in Clinical EFT Tapping (Emotional Freedom Techniques), I learned about trauma capsules. They explain so much of what I’ve heard from people who were manipulated and exploited by sociopaths. Trauma capsules form when children experience events so disturbing that kids can’t assim …
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To Mom and Dad: 9 reasons why your son or daughter fell for a sociopath
UPDATED FOR 2026 To the Mom and Dad of a Lovefraud Target, Your son or daughter has now come to the brutal realization that the entire relationship was a scam. Perhaps you've had your suspicions for a while. Perhaps you've even tried to tell your kid that the partner was no good, but he or she wouldn't listen to you. Now everything has collapsed, and you can't understand why your son or daughter didn't see it coming. Please understand that sociopaths are professional con artists, and they are really, really good at what they do. In fact, they spend their entire lives perfecting their craft. Following are nine reasons why your son or daughter fell for it. 1. Your son or …
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Letter to Lovefraud: Signs of marriage trouble
Editor’s note: In this Letter to Lovefraud a reader whom we’ll call “Cassie” tells her story of a long-distance relationship that became a marriage, and now she’s not sure about the marriage. Her husband was originally sweet and caring, but now he’s angry. Her story includes multiple signs of marriage trouble. My long-distance relationship I am so confused and in a dark place. I met my husband online about six years ago and we fell in love. I met him during Covid. I was working at a defense contractor and living with a roommate in a condo. My life was going pretty well. After talking online and on the phone for a few months he flew out to visit me and s …
Survey for survivors of victimization
A university researcher is studying the experiences of people who have tangled with individuals who have high psychopathic traits. If this has happened to you, and if you’re reading Lovefraud it probably did, please consider participating in her study. Here’s the official announcement: The Mental Health, Wellbeing and Lived Experiences Study Theresia Bedard, a PhD candidate at Lakehead University who is working with Dr. Beth Visser, is seeking participants for her dissertation project. In this study we are examining the lived experiences of people who have experience or victimization from an individual with high psychopathic traits. We are seeking anyone that has this lived exp …
10 Subtypes of psychopathy
UPDATED FOR 2026. A classic sign of psychopathy is cruelty towards animals. I’ve heard horror stories of psychopaths callously killing kittens, dogs and other animals. My psychopathic ex-husband, however, liked animals. He walked my dog every morning and brought home exotic pets. So he did not fit that stereotype. This observation is a small indication that psychopaths, antisocials and narcissists are not all the same. In fact, Dr. Theodore Millon, who was one of the great theorists of personality and personality disorders, identified 10 subtypes of psychopathy. His work does much to explain why some psychopaths plot deliberate, complex schemes and others act on impulse with no regard for c …